Kyrsten Sinema, the Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate from Arizona, stopped by ASU's downtown Phoenix campus Monday morning while classes were in session to hand out donuts and encourage students to vote tomorrow.
Students were given a donut if they said they were voting in the election tomorrow or had already voted.
"I think young people are really excited about the election this year and I am excited to meet young people who want to vote and help make a difference in our country," Sinema said. "And today is (one of two) National Donut Day(s), you know why? Because donuts are so good."
A crowd quickly gathered around the candidate, vying for donuts and a picture with her.
"I'm really excited, I actually want to take a picture with her so I can show my mom," Hiclay Holguin, a freshman studying business tourism, said. "But it is nice she is here because it shows she cares and she's here for the people of Arizona."
Though the few boxes of donuts Sinema brought with her quickly disappeared, the crowd continued to gather out of curiosity and to hear what she had to say.
"Millennials and college students are the least likely to vote," Ashley McDonald, a graduate student studying criminal justice and criminology, said. "So even just making a presence on campus gets people motivated to go out and vote and being able to ask her questions and see that she actually cares about us."
Since 2014, the number of eligible voters who are classified as Gen Xers, Millennials and post-Millennials has increased by 18 million, according to data from the Pew Research Center.
Sinema was open to initial questions from the media, but seemed more interested in answering student questions about why they should vote from her. She was asked a few questions about her platform, what difference she thought she could make if elected and why college students should be voting.
"Young people, I believe, should vote to have their voices be heard and this election really matters," Sinema said.
Reach the reporter at mlshuman@asu.edu or follow @mackenzieshuman on Twitter.
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